The field of the disclosure relates generally to aircraft engine data communications, and more particularly, to a wireless data link to aircraft engines, including the usage of an engine-coupled linearly polarized antenna that wirelessly facilitates transmission of engine data through an opening in a nacelle.
Known aircraft engines typically are enclosed in a nacelle that protects the complex engine components from foreign objects, provides an aerodynamic fairing for the engine, and in the case of a turbofan engine, provides a flow path for engine thrust. Moreover, because the reduction of weight is crucial in aircraft and nacelle construction, many known nacelles are manufactured with aluminum or a carbon fiber-reinforced polymer material that is light-weight, durable, strong, and capable meeting the structural and functional requirements of the aircraft propulsion system. However, materials such as aluminum and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer highly attenuate radio and wireless signals, and thus, it remains difficult to wirelessly and directly convey data through these types of materials. As a result, aircraft engine maintenance crews must remove a cowling of the nacelle or use a service panel or door in order to download engine data captured by an engine control unit using a hardwired connection. This type of manual inspection and manual engine data acquisition is time consuming and expensive because of both the labor and the time needed to shut down the engine. Moreover, manual engine data acquisition poses greater risk of damage to the engine and nacelle during the engine data acquisition process. Other known aircraft engine systems use a surface-mounted antenna on the surface of the nacelle to communicate data wirelessly. However, this surface-mounted antenna on the nacelle negatively affects aerodynamic properties of the aircraft and generally requires a time consuming and costly redesign of the nacelle. Moreover, a surface-mounted antenna requires lightning protection to safeguard the low voltage antenna and radio module which adds time, complexity, and expense. Because an aircraft engine is enclosed within an aluminum or a carbon fiber constructed nacelle, any wireless signals propagated from within the nacelle are highly attenuated, leading to poor signal quality and difficulties in acquiring the engine data wirelessly from outside the nacelle.